Educated Workforce

Excellence in Academics and Technology

Our students rank among the top in the nation in several areas.  North Dakota's fourth graders are ranked in the top ten for their math scores and, our eighth graders are ranked #2 among all states in their math scores in 2003. Our fourth graders are ranked in the top 20 for reading scores and by eighth grade, they are ranked #4 in the nation, according to the National Assessment of Education Progress.

North Dakota ranks #1 for the state with the highest number of students (95 percent) who receive their high school credential. In addition, North Dakota is also the top-performing state in the percentage of high school students who go on to college right after graduating (59 percent), according to Measuring Up 2002.

In the 2002 Postsecondary Education Opportunity report, editors stated the following about North Dakota:

In every way we measure college participation across the states, North Dakota sets the height of the bar against which all other states should measure their own performance at graduating their students from high school and getting them enrolled in college immediately following high school graduation.

There's more:  One hundred percent of all public high schools in North Dakota are connected to the state’s telecommunications infrastructure.  According to Education Week's Technology Counts 2002 report, North Dakota is ranked:

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       first among schools where at least half of the teachers use the Internet for instruction at 87 percent;
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       first among schools with Internet access from one or more classrooms at 97 percent; and
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       third in the number of students per computer at 2.8.

Since 1995, North Dakota has offered its students, as well as students worldwide, the opportunity to take courses online.  Since 2000, it has provided the opportunity to earn a high school diploma entirely over the Internet.  In 2002, 1,340 students in 50 states and 43 countries took courses online through the North Dakota Division of Independent Studies. The North Dakota Division of Independent Study is the fifth largest distance education school in the nation.

These numbers not only come from talent, but also a strong commitment to excel.  North Dakotans are raised to be hard workers; it's something that has been ingrained in them from the beginning.  This work ethic carries over to academic excellence and job performance.

Bring your business to North Dakota and you will find our highly educated and hard-working employees will help you achieve a positive bottom line.